Celtic star Ryan Christie believes that Leigh Griffiths is looking sharp, and says he seems to be over his personal issues.
Griff only returned to action for Celtic at the start of pre-season this year. That came after what was effectively a six-month absence dating back to December due to Griffiths’ own personal reasons.
But his return to form has been swift and typical. Griffiths has an incredible six goals from his first four games in green-and-white this year. Granted, he’s yet to play a competitive game, but that’ll come soon.
Speaking to the Scottish Sun, however, Christie believes Griffiths is back to his best, and he stated that he’s delighted to see the striker seemingly over whatever plagued him in the past.
“Now that’s he’s back it’s like he’s never been gone. Leigh is just working hard with the boys. He certainly doesn’t look like he has got any problems anymore. So I am delighted for him.
“Towards the end of last season we did well to try and fill Leigh’s void. But to have someone like him who can create a goal out of nothing is priceless. Since Leigh came back in pre-season he’s been brilliant.
“He’s worked as hard as anyone trying to get himself fit again so fair play to him. He’s now benefiting from that and getting his rewards — you could see he did look very sharp at the weekend.”
Personal issues can be toughest opponent of them all
Griffiths deserves huge praise for the nature of his return to Parkhead and how fit and ready he seems. Despite being plagued by his issues, the Celtic man incredibly managed to keep himself in top condition fitness-wise.
Since returning, it’s fair to say that Griffiths has never looked fitter. He’s sharp, powerful, and looking in great shape all-round.
Christie is also right to bring up how sharp he looked at the weekend too. Griffiths has a burning desire to perform every time he steps out onto the pitch. That’s including friendly matches too, and against Rennes, Griff showed high levels of energy that will encourage supporters ahead of the new season.
You can clearly see that Griffiths wants to pay back the club who offered him so much support. Celtic have always stood by their Scotland international, and Griff appears keen to reward them for it.
It shows the strength of Griffiths as an individual to have managed to come back from his situation. He’s still to play a competitive game as it stands, but that should be likely to arrive on Wednesday night against Sarajevo at Celtic Park.
Clearly, his teammates have been impressed with his return to pre-season form. And, ahead of a new season, having a fit and firing Griffiths available is a monumental boost.
Receive a digest of our best Celtic content each week direct to your mailbox
